Since Tom Brady joined the media, he has somewhat surprisingly become one of NFL media’s most fervent detractors of modern quarterback play.
Brady has repeatedly argued that the developmental system and hotshot play-callers have left QBs unable to read defenses and dictate plays, reducing the position to one based more on athleticism and execution than intelligence. This line of thinking has also cropped up in commentary from other luminaries of Brady’s generation, including Jon Gruden and Peyton Manning.
It can sometimes seem a little unfair, and apparently Yahoo’s Nate Tice agrees.
Tice, who played quarterback at Wisconsin and is the son of longtime NFL offensive tactician Mike Tice, said in an appearance this week on The Domonique Foxworth Show that Brady’s perspective on today’s QBs “does these guys a disservice.”
“I kind of really get mad a little bit about some of these old coaches and old players, Gruden, Tom Brady, who I respect a ton, and they just act like the guys today can’t even walk and chew gum at the same time,” Tice said. “And that really frustrates me because I feel like it does these guys a disservice.”
Instead, Tice explained, defensive coaches have outsmarted offensive coaches since Brady and Gruden left the league. The reads a quarterback had to make were much simpler in Brady’s era, Tice said.
“Of course Tom Brady was like, ‘These guys don’t know what they’re doing,'” he added.
“I’m sure it was great to just know, if this guy goes in motion, it’s man coverage, every single snap. I’m sure that was awesome. So I do say that as much as (quarterbacks) have gotten better, it’s just defenses are ahead right now.
“But I think it’s not ability, it’s scheme … everybody has risen, but I think the defensive scheme is holding the pen right now, more than anything. It just frustrates me how people describe these guys.”
In fairness to Brady, he has been just as critical of coaches and coordinators who want to dazzle with the plays they draw up as he has quarterbacks. Brady’s main point is that football is less of a chess game than it was when he played, which he thinks has been a detriment to the quality of play.
Still, it can often come across as a back-in-my-day type complaint. Tice’s comments show that not everyone covering the NFL sees it the same way as Brady.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.